Chapter 304: The New Warden of the Thunder Prison

The long-vacant position of Warden of the Prison had finally been filled.

The new warden's surname was Lei, in his early forties. He stood out among many candidates, it was said, because his young aunt had once been a wet nurse to a wealthy household, and his cousin had become the household's concubine.

The wealthy household had influence in the Ministry of Justice, and after arranging things behind the scenes, the lucrative post of warden went to the man surnamed Lei.

Even before Lei's official appointment, the capable men of the Heavenly Prison had already dug up every detail of his background and past.

"... e was originally a thug, then leveraged his aunt's connections to become a hanger-on at the wealthy household—a man who could both fight and think. He gradually gained trust and became a farm manager. He committed several offenses, but each was quietly buried. Later, he worked as a hanger-on in the yamen, became a constable, then served as a clerk, handling plenty of dirty work."

"The warden's post was originally meant for a man surnamed Huang. But Huang had a bad habit: gambling. Before the list was announced, he got into trouble at a gambling den. Everyone suspects Huang was set up, but there's no proof."

"The warden's post is rich with bribes; countless people covet it. Huang brought it on himself with his misconduct, giving others the chance to trap him. He has no one to blame but himself."

"As far as I know, Lei never intended to compete for the warden's post at first. But the wealthy household behind him wanted him to step forward."

"Would a wealthy household even care about the warden's post?"

"Why wouldn't they? It brings in at least a few thousand taels a year. Would you turn it down? Even the wealthy don't treat a few thousand taels like dirt."

"Money is trivial—the real prize is that the Heavenly Prison holds many disgraced officials. Those are the men the wealthy household truly cares about."

At these words, everyone turned to look at Chen Guanlou. He was the jailer of the Jia-1 Prison Block—ha, once Lei became warden, he'd surely fixate on Jia-1.

Many secretly rejoiced at the thought.

"Lei rose from the bottom—he's ruthless and heartless. Unlike Master Fan, who's educated, or former Warden Niu, who's a seasoned bureaucrat who knows the rules. Lei won't play by the rules."

This remark was clearly meant for Chen Guanlou.

Chen Guanlou remained calm. "Let's discuss how we should receive Warden Lei when he officially assumes office tomorrow."

"The old rules, of course. Do you have a new idea, Jailor Chen?"

"I have no new idea. I only want to know how big Lei's appetite is."

"We won't know until we test him. Jailor Chen, you're a scholar—why don't you take the lead? We roughnecks might say the wrong thing and offend him."

"Fine!" Chen Guanlou didn't refuse. Of the three prison blocks, Jia-1 brought in the most profit. Whoever became warden would fixate on Jia-1.

As jailer of Jia-1, it was his duty to take the lead—to gauge Lei's weight and find a balance in their dealings.

He had sent word to Master Fan.

Master Fan was busy with his restaurant business and had clearly stated that all matters concerning Jia-1 were to be handled by Chen Guanlou. As for welcoming the new warden, he would appear and present a gift of silver—but he wished to have no dealings with Lei. He wanted Chen Guanlou to keep him entirely out of it, just as they'd originally agreed: he claimed only his share of the profits, nothing else.

Early the next morning, everyone changed into clean uniforms and stood in the courtyard, alert and ready to welcome Warden Lei.

The sun was high, but Warden Lei did not arrive on time.

People began murmuring.

Xu Fugui leaned close to Chen Guanlou. "Do you think Lei is deliberately late to intimidate us, or is there another reason?"

Chen Guanlou replied, "Tomorrow, the Ministry of Justice will send over a batch of prisoners. No matter what, Lei will assume office today—unless he doesn't want to be warden of the Heavenly Prison."

"If he doesn't want it, plenty will take it. If the higher-ups favored me, I'd leap at the chance." Xu Fugui chuckled smugly.

Xu Fugui had gotten along well with the logistics crew these past two years. His oil and grain business had successfully penetrated the logistics department. Though he didn't monopolize it, even a fraction of the prison's scale was enough to make him rich.

With his business booming, he'd grown fatter—his belly swelled like it carried seven or eight months' worth of weight. His chin had vanished, his jawbone disappeared, his entire face swallowed by greasy fat—a textbook middle-aged oily man.

"I heard you took a new concubine, Jailor Xu. When are you treating us to wine?" Chen Guanlou asked casually.

Xu Fugui beamed. "A country girl—only young and fresh, knows nothing. I'll train her first. When she learns the rules, I'll invite everyone for wine and have her meet you all."

"That'd be splendid!" Chen Guanlou smiled in agreement.

"Little Chen, you're not young anymore. Haven't you thought about marrying? Do you look down on all those common women? What kind of woman are you after? Tell Uncle, I'll arrange it for you."

"No need for you to trouble yourself," Chen Guanlou replied flatly. Xu Fugui's expression darkened, clearly annoyed.

"You used to call me Uncle every time. Now that your status has changed, you won't even call me Uncle anymore. Times have changed—people have lost their morals."

Chen Guanlou snorted. "We're both jailers, and this is work time. If I called you Uncle, would you feel comfortable answering? You want to blur public and private lines—I won't. Let's keep public matters public and private matters private. I'm grateful for your favor, but I ask for your respect in return. Mutual respect and harmony are better than anything. If you refuse to give me face and insist on playing Uncle..."

"What will you do?" Xu Fugui felt humiliated but dared not openly defy him—he lowered his voice, hoping Chen Guanlou would back down first.

Chen Guanlou was about to reply when a jailer returned with word: Warden Lei had arrived.

Instantly, everyone moved, rushing to the main gate to welcome him.

To everyone's surprise, Warden Lei was a middle-aged, refined, handsome man—completely mismatched with his record. But then again, if he'd won the wealthy household's favor and backing, he must have been clever and resourceful—and likely had a face people found pleasing. No wealthy household would promote someone ugly.

Even court officials were judged by appearance; wealthy households were no different.

Take the Hou Fu, for example—no one there was ugly; at least, all had decent features.

"We pay our respects to Warden Lei!" Leading the group, the jailers bowed deeply in unison, welcoming the new warden with full ceremony and ample deference.